This work was supported by the Fritz Thyssen Foundation (Az.10.14.2.152). We are grateful to the tissue embedding facility and the microscope core facility of CMMC. We are grateful for the discussions and technical support provided by the members of the Laboratory for Centrosome and Cytoskeleton Biology. We thank Li Ming Gooi for proofreading the manuscript.

1. Generation of Brain Organoids (23 days)
<ol>
	<li>Initiation of neuroectoderm (5 days) 
	NOTE: The following points should be considered before the start of differentiation. The reprogramming method (lentiviral-, sendai-virus-, episomal-, or microRNA-based etc.) to obtain human iPSCs should ideally be the same for all patient and control iPSC lines. Various reprogramming kits and instructions based on published protocols are available15,<sup class="xr...

<ol>
	<li>Lancaster, M. A., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Cerebral+organoids+model+human+brain+development+and+microcephaly.">Cerebral organoids model human brain development and microcephaly.</a> Nature. 501, 373-379 (2013).</li><li>Eiraku, M., Sasai, Y. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Mouse+embryonic+stem+cell+culture+for+generation+of+three-dimensional+retinal+and+cortical+tissues.">Mouse embryonic stem cell culture for generation of three-dimensional retinal and cortical tissues.</a> Nat Protoc. 7, 69-79 (2012).</li><li>Nakano, T., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Self-formation+of+optic+cups+and+storable+stratified+neural+retina+from+human+ESCs.">Self-formation of optic cups and storable stratified neural retina from human ESCs.</a> Cell Stem Cell. 10, 771-785 (2012).</li><li>Gabriel, E., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=CPAP+promotes+timely+cilium+disassembly+to+maintain+neural+progenitor+pool.">CPAP promotes timely cilium disassembly to maintain neural progenitor pool.</a> EMBO J. 35 (8), 803-819 (2016).</li><li>Al-Dosari, M. S., Shaheen, R., Colak, D., Alkuraya, F. S. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Novel+CENPJ+mutation+causes+Seckel+syndrome.">Novel CENPJ mutation causes Seckel syndrome.</a> J Med Genet. 47, 411-414 (2010).</li><li>Wollnik, B. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+common+mechanism+for+microcephaly.">A common mechanism for microcephaly.</a> Nat Genet. 42, 923-924 (2010).</li><li>Thornton, G. K., Woods, C. G. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Primary+microcephaly:+do+all+roads+lead+to+Rome?.">Primary microcephaly: do all roads lead to Rome?.</a> Trends Genet. 25, 501-510 (2009).</li><li>Barbelanne, M., Tsang, W. Y. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Molecular+and+cellular+basis+of+autosomal+recessive+primary+microcephaly.">Molecular and cellular basis of autosomal recessive primary microcephaly.</a> Biomed Res Int. 2014, 547986 (2014).</li><li>Homem, C. C., Repic, M., Knoblich, J. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Proliferation+control+in+neural+stem+and+progenitor+cells.">Proliferation control in neural stem and progenitor cells.</a> Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 16, 647-659 (2015).</li><li>Gabriel, E., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=CPAP+promotes+timely+cilium+disassembly+to+maintain+neural+progenitor+pool.">CPAP promotes timely cilium disassembly to maintain neural progenitor pool.</a> EMBO J. 35, 803-819 (2016).</li><li>Mak, S. K., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Small+molecules+greatly+improve+conversion+of+human-induced+pluripotent+stem+cells+to+the+neuronal+lineage.">Small molecules greatly improve conversion of human-induced pluripotent stem cells to the neuronal lineage.</a> Stem Cells Int. , (2012).</li><li>Morizane, A., Doi, D., Kikuchi, T., Nishimura, K., Takahashi, J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Small-molecule+inhibitors+of+bone+morphogenic+protein+and+activin/nodal+signals+promote+highly+efficient+neural+induction+from+human+pluripotent+stem+cells.">Small-molecule inhibitors of bone morphogenic protein and activin/nodal signals promote highly efficient neural induction from human pluripotent stem cells.</a> J. Neurosci. Res. 89, 117-126 (2011).</li><li>Shi, Y., Kirwan, P., Livesey, F. 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T., Fontes, A., Vemuri, M. C., Macarthur, C. C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Generation+of+induced+pluripotent+stem+cells+with+CytoTune,+a+non-integrating+Sendai+virus.">Generation of induced pluripotent stem cells with CytoTune, a non-integrating Sendai virus.</a> Methods Mol. 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The authors declare that they have no competing financial interests.

MCPH is a complex human neurodevelopmental disorder that cannot be recapitulated in animal models in vivo or in simple human cell culture approaches in vitro. The clinical manifestation of MCPH begins to appear during the first trimester, when early neurogenesis begins. Thus, 3D brain organoids represent a reliable experimental system to model MCPH development. In addition, 3D human brain organoids are an ideal approach since i) they allow for the adaptation of a spectrum of patient samples with various...

Human neurodevelopmental disorders, such as microcephaly, can only be poorly studied in animal models due to the fact that human brains have an extended cortical surface, a unique feature differing from non-human animals.
This aspect makes human brain development a complex process that cannot be sufficiently studied in a 2D, in vitro cell culture system. Emerging 3D culture techniques allow the generation of tissue-like organoids from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). The in vitro differentiation of pluripotent stem cells in a 3D suspension culture allows the formation of various cell types in a timely and region-specific manner, giving rise to an organized, stratified tissue1,2,3. Thanks to laboratories that pioneered 3D culture technologies and demystified the complexity of organ formation, starting from stem cells, we developed a robust method of generating brain organoids to delineate early events of human brain development and to model microcephaly in vitro1,2,3. It is noteworthy that we adapted the original method developed by Lancaster et al. to generate cerebral organoids1. This method was modified according to our experimental requirements.
The aim of a study from Gabriel et al. was to analyze the cellular and molecular mechanisms of neural stem cell maintenance during brain development. In order to do this, a mechanistic study was performed by analyzing neural progenitor cells (NPCs) in 3D brain organoids derived from a microcephaly patient4. This patient carried a mutation in CPAP, a conserved centrosomal protein required for centrosome biogenesis5. A widely accepted hypothesis is that microcephaly is the result of a depletion of the NPC pool, and this might be due either to cell death or to premature differentiation1,6,7,8,9.
By analyzing the ventricular zones (VZs) of microcephaly brain organoids, it was shown that a significant number of NPCs undergo asymmetrical cell division, unlike brain organoids derived from a healthy donor4. Extensive microscopic and biochemical analyses of microcephalic brain organoids revealed an unexpected role for CPAP in timely cilia disassembly4. Specifically, mutated CPAP is associated with retarded cilium disassembly and delayed cell cycle re-entry, leading to the premature differentiation of NPCs4. These results suggest a role for cilia in microcephaly and their involvement during neurogenesis and brain size control10.
The first part of this protocol is a description of a three-step method to generate homogenous brain organoids. As mentioned before, the original Lancaster protocol was adapted and modified to suit our purpose1. First, human iPSCs are cultured in a defined feeder-free condition on Engelbreth-Holm-Swarm (EHS) matrix. This step avoids the variations of feeder-dependent pluripotent stem cell cultures. In this protocol, the induction of neural differentiation to form neural epithelium starts directly from iPSCs. By skipping the embryoid body (EB) formation step, the neural differentiation proceeds in a more controlled and directed manner. This approach limits the spontaneous and undirected formation of other germ cell layers, such as mesoderm and endoderm. By applying this protocol, neurospheres containing neural rosettes can be harvested on day 5 for EHS matrix embedding and stationary suspension culture. The organoid medium used for the third step of our protocol is supplemented with dorsomorphin and SB431542. Dorsomorphin is a small-molecule inhibitor of bone morphogenic protein (BMP), and SB431542 inhibits the TGF&#946;/activin/nodal signaling pathway. The combination of these factors could promote neural differentiation more efficiently than retinoic acid alone11,12,13,14.
Altogether, these modifications enable the reproducible generation of brain organoids, with minimal variations across organoids. Importantly, this method was applied to robustly generate microcephalic brain organoids from patient iPSCs, which carry mutations in genes that affect centrosomes and cell-cycle dynamics.
The second part of this protocol gives instructions to prepare brain organoids for the analysis and interpretation of cellular defects in microcephaly. This includes fixation, cryosectioning, immunofluorescent staining, and confocal microscopic analysis. This protocol will provide the reader with a detailed description of expected results and with guidance for interpretation.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="670">
	<tbody>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:216px;">Anti-mouse 488</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A-11001</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Goat anti-Mouse IgG (H+L) Secondary Antibody, Alexa Fluor 488</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:216px;">Anti-rabbit 647</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A-21245</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Goat anti-Rabbit IgG (H+L) Secondary Antibody, Alexa Fluor 647</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Arl13b</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">proteintech</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">17711-1-AP</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">ARL13B rabbit polyclonal antibody&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">CELLSPIN system</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">IBS Integra Bioscience</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">183001</td>
			<td style="width:212px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:216px;">DAPI</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">32670</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">4&#8242;,6-Diamidino-2-phenylindole dihydrochloride; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">DMEM/F-12</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">31331093</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Dulbecco&#39;s Modified Eagle Medium: Nutrient Mixture F-12&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Dorsomorphin</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">P5499</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Compound C; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Embedding medium</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">AppliChem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A9011, 0100</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Mowiol; embedding medium; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Engelbreth-Holm-Swarm (EHS) matrix</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Corning</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">354277</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Matrigel hESC-qualified matrix; important: hESC qualified</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="84">
			<td height="84" style="height:84px;width:216px;">Fish gelatin&#160;</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">G7765-250ML</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Gelatin from cold water fish skin; multiple suppliers; autoclave after adding to PBS to dissolve and sterilize, store at 4&#176;C</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Glycine</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">AppliChem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A1067,1000</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Glycine for molecular biology; multiple suppliers&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Inoculation loop with needle, disposable (1 &#181;l)</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">BR452201-1000EA</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">multiple suppliers&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Insulin</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">I3536-100MG</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">L-glutamine</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">25030081</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">L-glutamine (200 mM)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Medium A</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Stem cell technologies</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">#05850</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">mTeSR1 (hiPSC medium)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Medium B</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Stem cell technologies</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">#05835</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Neural induction medium (NIM); neural differentiation medium</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">Medium C</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">21103049</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Neural Basal Medium</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">MEM</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">11140035</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">MEM non-essential amino acids solution (100x)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">MycoAlert Mycoplasma Detection Kit</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Lonza, Switzerland</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">#LT07-218</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Mycoplasma detection kit; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Nestin</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Novus biologicals</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">NBP1-92717</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Nestin mouse monoclonal antibody (4D11)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="63">
			<td height="63" style="height:63px;width:216px;">Paraformaldehyde (PFA)</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">AppliChem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A3813, 0500</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">4% in PBS, store solution at -20&#176;C; caution: wear skin and eye protection and work under hood&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">PBS tablets</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">18912014</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">See manufacturer&#180;s instructions; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Penicillin-Streptomycin (10.000 U/ml)</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">15140122</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Poly-L-lysine solution (PLL)</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">P8920-100ML</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">pVim</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">MBL</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">D076-3S</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Phospho-Vimentin (Ser55) mAb</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="147">
			<td height="147" style="height:147px;width:216px;">Reagent A&#160;</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Stem cell technologies</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"># 05872</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Note to Protocol 1.1.1.2; ReLSR (Enzyme-free human ES and iPS cell selection and passaging reagent); please follow manufactorer&#180;s protocol; alternative products from muliple suppliers available</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="105">
			<td height="105" style="height:105px;width:216px;">Reagent B&#160;</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A6964-100ML</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Accutase solution is an enzymatic solution for single cell dissociation; multiple suppliers; protocol 1.1.2 &#34;enzymatic cell dissociation solution&#8221;&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Research Cryostat Leica CM3050 S</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Leica biosystems</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">CM3050 S</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">SB431542</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Selleckchem.com</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">S1067</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Spinner flask 250 ml</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">IBS Integra Bioscience</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">182026</td>
			<td style="width:212px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">Sucrose</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">AppliChem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A4734, 1000</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Superfrost ultra plus microscope slides</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Thermo scientific, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">J3800AMNZ</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Slides should be labeled with a &#34;+&#34; and positively charged</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">Supplement 1</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">17502048</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">N-2 supplement (100x)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Supplement 2 w/o Vitamin A</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">12587010</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">B-27 supplement (50x), minus vitamin A; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">Tissue-Tek Cryomold</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sakura, NL</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">4565</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">Tissue-Tek O.C.T. compound</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sakura, NL</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">4583</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Triton X-100</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">AppliChem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A1388,0500</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">TUJ1</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Sigma-Aldrich, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">T2200</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">&#946;-Tubulin III (rabbit polyclonal)</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">TUNEL assay</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Promega, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">G3250</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">DeadEnd Fluorometric TUNEL system; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:216px;">Tween 20 for molecular biology</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">AppliChem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A4974,0500</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">waterproof sheet</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">BEMIS company, inc.</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">PM996</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">Parafilm &#8220;M&#8221;; multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">Y-27632&#160;</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Selleckchem.com</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">S1049</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">ROCK-inhibitor (Y-27632 2HCL); multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="42">
			<td height="42" style="height:42px;width:216px;">&#946;-mercaptoethanol</td>
			<td style="width:123px;">Gibco, US</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">31350010</td>
			<td style="width:212px;">2-mercaptoethanol (50 mM); multiple suppliers</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

generation of ipsc-derived human brain organoids to model early neurodevelopmental disorders

The restricted availability of suitable in vitro models that can reliably represent complex human brain development is a significant bottleneck that limits the translation of basic brain research into clinical application. While induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) have replaced the ethically questionable human embryonic stem cells, iPSC-based neuronal differentiation studies remain descriptive at the cellular level but fail to adequately provide the details that could be derived from a complex, 3D human brain tissue. 
This gap is now filled through the application of iPSC-derived, 3D brain organoids, "Brains in a dish," that model many features of complex human brain development. Here, a method for generating iPSC-derived, 3D brain organoids is described. The organoids can help with modeling autosomal recessive primary microcephaly (MCPH), a rare human neurodevelopmental disorder. A widely accepted explanation for the brain malformation in MCPH is a depletion of the neural stem cell pool during the early stages of human brain development, a developmental defect that is difficult to recreate or prove in vitro. 
To study MCPH, we generated iPSCs from patient-derived fibroblasts carrying a mutation in the centrosomal protein CPAP. By analyzing the ventricular zone of microcephaly 3D brain organoids, we showed the premature differentiation of neural progenitors. These 3D brain organoids are a powerful in vitro system that will be instrumental in modeling congenital brain disorders induced by neurotoxic chemicals, neurotrophic viral infections, or inherited genetic mutations.

The generation of brain organoids requires at least three weeks of continuous culturing (Figure 1A). To accomplish reproducible results, we recommend that the researcher documents every step and, importantly, avoids any alterations regarding medium components, time points, and cell handling. Here, we give a summary of how to evaluate if critical milestones are reached in order to obtain organoids of sufficient quality at the end of the experiment. The formation of neurosp...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Generation of iPSC-derived Human Brain Organoids to Model Early Neurodevelopmental Disorders at JoVE.com

Generation of iPSC-derived Human Brain Organoids to Model Early Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Modeling human brain development has been hindered due to the unprecedented complexity of neural epithelial tissue. Here, a method for the robust generation of brain organoids to delineate early events of human brain development and to model microcephaly in vitro is described.

The restricted availability of suitable in vitro models that can reliably represent complex human brain development is a significant bottleneck that ...

The overall goal of this protocol for generating iPSC-derived Human Brain Organoids is to model early human neurodevelopmental disorders. This method can help answer key questions in the human brain development field such as the role of synthesomes and cilia in novel neurogenesis and primary microcephaly. The main advantage of this technique is that it is a robust and quick model to obtain reproducible results from patient's iPSC-derived brain organites.Demonstrating the procedure will be Elke Gabriel, a post-doc from my laboratory at the Center for Molecular Medicine, Cologne. To begin this procedure, collect the neurospheres with a 200 microliter micropipette using a two millimeter tip previously cut with sterile scissors. Next, place the neurospheres approximately five milliliters away from each other on a paraffin film in a 100 milliliter dish.And carefully remove as much of the remaining medium as possible. Then, add a drop of EHS matrix onto each single neurosphere. Incubate the EHS matrix drops with the neurospheres for 15 minutes at 37 degrees celsius.After that, wash the neurospheres carefully from the paraffin film by flushing them with neurosphere medium. Subsequently, incubate the neurospheres for the next four days and add two millimeters of fresh neurosphere medium on day two. In this procedure, add 100 milliliters of brain organoid medium to each spinner flask through its side arms.And prewarm the medium in the incubator at 37 degrees celsius for at least 20 minutes. Then, make sure the neurospheres are all separated. If two or more are connected through EHS matrix, separate them by cutting the connecting matrix with a scalpel.Set up a stirring program at 25 RPM. Carefully transfer the EHS matrix embedded neurospheres into the spinner flasks containing 100 milliliters of organoid medium. Following that, space the spinner flasks on a magnetic stirring platform in the incubator for 14 days at 37 degrees celsius.This is day zero of the organoid culture. Change the medium once a week by removing half of the medium and adding the same amount of the fresh medium. In this step, collect the organoids from the spinner flask culture on day 14 with a pre-cut one milliliter micro pipette.Put all of them in a 60 millimeter dish and wash them once with five milliliters of warm DMEM F12 for three minutes. Afterward, prepare a 1.5 milliliter tube with 500 microliters of warm, 4%PFA. Place each organoid separately in each tube and fix them for 30-60 minutes at room temperature.Afterward, use an inoculation loop to removed the organoids. Then, remove PFA and wash the fixed organoids twice for 10 minutes each time with one milliliter of PBS. Subsequently, store the organoids in one milliliter of PBS at four degrees celsius for up to 7 days for further use.To embed the organoids for cryosectioning, remove PBS and add 1 milliliter of 30%sucrose solution in each tube to dehydrate the organoids before cryofreezing them. After adding sucrose solution, the organoids should be floating at the surface. Store the organoids overnight in sucrose solution at four degrees celsius.By the next day, the organoids should've sunk down to the bottom of the tube. Following that, fill a vinyl specimen mold with 400 milliliters of OCT compound. And use an inoculation loop to place an organoid at the center of the mold.Label the rim of the mold with the sample name. Then, freeze the organoid-containing mold at negative 80 degrees celsius until cryosectioning. Subsequently, coat the glass cryoslides with 0.1%PLL and PBS for five minutes at room temperature.Then, let the slides dry for three hours. Store the slides at four degrees celsius and warm them up to room temperature before use. Following that, section the cryo-frozen organoids into 20 to 50 micrometer thick slices on the PLL-coated glass cryoslides.Let the sections dry from one hour at room temperature and store the sections at negative 80 degrees celsius until further processing. Immunofluorescent imaging of cryosectioned organoids displaying a typical VZ and the primitive cortical plate. The VZ spans from the apical side to the basil side.Note that the cells within the VZ display paliside-like nucleide suggesting that they are radial glial cells. The right panel shows the immunofluorescent staining of nested positive NPCs within the VZ and TUJ1 positive neurons in the primitive cortical plate. Shown here are two examples of VZs stained with PVIM and ARL 13B.The regions marked by white squares are magnified. Apical radial glial cells dividing at the apical side of the VZ are PVIM positive. The division plane of an anaphase cell is horizontal to the lumen surface line which is marked by ARL 13B staining.Once mastered, this technique can be done in 23 days if it is performed properly. While attempting this procedure, it's important to remember to perform periodic quality check and microplasma check on cultures. After its development, this technique paved the way for researchers in the field of development in neurobiology to explore the mechanisms of neurodevelopment in human brain organoids.After watching this video, you should have a good understanding of how to generate human brain organoids from various iPSC cell lines including patient cell lines with compromised cellular functions.

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Developmental Biology

19.4K ビュー.  University of Cologne. The overall goal of this protocol for generating iPSC-derived Human Brain Organoids is to model early human neurodevelopmental disorders. This method can help answer key questions in the human brain development field such as the role of synthesomes and cilia in novel neurogenesis and primary microcephaly. The main advantage of this technique is that it is a robust and quick model to obtain reproducible results from patient's iPSC-derived brain organites.Demonstrating the procedure will...